“We’re drowning in technical talent, but starving for technical storytellers” (Addy Osmani, 2025).
We write code for computers, explain it to people, and now, to machines that talk back.
Across all three, the real challenge isn’t logic, it’s clarity and properly conveying our intent..
This talk introduces The Cognitive Empathy Framework, a practical model connecting cognitive psychology with engineering communication. It reveals how the same storytelling principles that make our code readable and our talks engaging and understandable also make our prompts far more effective.

We’ll explore how concepts like chunking, naming, consistency, predictability, and context framing, along with audience modeling, cognitive load management, and feedback loops, form the invisible grammar of learning and understanding; whether between humans or between humans and machines.
Through real-world examples from code reviews, tech talks, and AI prompts, you'll learn to communicate better and explain complex ideas more clearly, whether it's with your teammates or with AI.